The 2-step method for better focus time (with Nir Eyal)
Many people think the opposite of distraction is focus — it’s not. The opposite of distraction is traction.
Traction is any action that pulls you towards what you said you’re going to do. Activities that are aligned with your values and help you be the person you want to be.
Distraction is any action that pulls you away from doing what you said you’re going to do.
Nir Eyal, the bestselling author of Hooked and Indistractable, spent an hour on Clubhouse sharing tips to take control of your attention with BUNCH and The Week In Product. Let’s dive into how Nir has transformed his life and supercharged his productivity habits.
Are you feeling triggered?
You’ve got a big project, you’re determined not to get distracted… but first, let’s check if you have any emails. Famous last words if you don’t want to get anything done.
While we may be good at tapping into users’ triggers when building products, we’re pretty bad at recognizing our own. According to Nir, there are two types of triggers that will cause distraction:
- Internal — what’s going on inside your head
- External — the pings and dings you’re used to
Snoozing Slack for the day is easy enough, but how do you get a hold of the chatter in your brain that keeps you from getting sh*t done?
📅 Make time for traction
Eyal says, “Every action can be traction or distraction. It’s only a distraction if you’re doing it on somebody else’s schedule instead of yours.”
In order to understand something as a distraction, you have to understand what it’s distracting you from. That means putting everything you want to accomplish in your calendar, including (but not limited to):
- Responding to emails
- Reading a book
- Playing a game
- Spending time on Twitter
- Completing your 2-min BUNCH leadership tip
The more detailed you are, the more in control you are of your actions. If you’re clear on what you intend to be doing, you’ll also be clear on when you’re not focused on doing that thing.
⛏ Hack back your triggers
When you find yourself in an unexpected rabbit hole, what rabbit lured you down there?
- A Slack message asking you a quick question?
- An unexpected email from a friend?
- A casual pleasure-scroll through TikTok when you got bored?
Any number of things, internal or external, can trigger distraction. To become indistractable, you have to be able to identify your trigger moments and then do your best to prevent them from happening.
That might look like:
- Popping a message to the team that you won’t sign onto slack until a designated time of day
- Turn off your email notifications — you get to it when the calendar says so!
- Putting social media time in your calendar, just as you would a meeting — you don’t have to cut social media out, just make sure it’s intentional
👋 “Hello, I’m indistractable”
“For long-term change to occur, if you want to do things in a new way, you have to see yourself differently.” — Nir Eyal
If you want to be indistractable, own your focus, and boost your productivity, you have to change your mindset. You have to be indistractable, says Nir. Just like you might introduce yourself at a party as an engineer, or a vegetarian, your identity should include “indistractable.”
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